Winning and Losing
by Fallaby Z
Summary: He took winning for granted. It came so easily that it didn't hold any meaning to him anymore. So until she flitted into and then out of his life, he had no idea how much it hurt to lose. AominexOC HIATUS DAMMIT


**I've had this idea for a while now, and I wanted so badly to put something new up, so...why not? Even though I have 100000000x unfinished stories lol**

* * *

_(I) Leaving Home_

"Have fun with your cousin, Yori," her mother murmured, her voice a mix of anxiety and excitement as leaned into the car window. "Remember, honey, if you ever need anything, call us right away!"

Yori, a pretty little thing whose black hair was tied neatly into one long braid, jerked instinctively when she suddenly felt her mother's cool hands pat her face tenderly. It was an unexpected but not unwelcome touch, and the young girl savored the last few moments of her time with her family. She smiled as her mother planted a hard kiss on her cheek, no doubt leaving a stain of whatever lipstick she was wearing that day. Her eyes were open habitually, but her dark brown eyes were glassy and stared off into the distance, unseeing.

Her mood soured when she remembered that she'd never be able to see colors again. Angrily, she wiped the smudge off her cheek.

"We love you, honey!" my father called, his voice further off in the distance as he hauled the last of the suitcases in the back of the blue sedan. "Take care of her, Kyoshiro!"

Uncle Kyoshiro, who was sitting in the front seat of the car, laughed. "Yori's a strong girl and Satsuki will take to her immediately; you remember how well you two played together when you were young, don't you, Yori?"

Yori fiddled with the end of her braid, feeling the jagged ends thoughtfully. She did remember Momoi Satsuki, her same-age cousin, though the memories were vague and sparse. She distinctly remembered her fluffy, cotton-candy pink hair and the next-door neighbor that her cousin had always dragged along to the playground. He was big and tall and unusually dark, which scared Yori, who'd always been the runt, but his infectious laughter was such a contrast to his appearance that she couldn't help laughing along with him.

Thinking about her life before the accident, before she lost her sight and actually amounted to something, was still painful, but the sting had dulled over the years. It had been a good six years now since she'd first lost her sight, and she'd mostly found ways around the...blindness. The plus side was that she could still tell the difference between light and dark.

Yori was taking too long to answer, so Uncle Kyoshiro coughed and excluded her from the conversation as if she were deaf, not blind. It was annoying but not completely his fault, so Yori forgave him silently as she turned her head to face the slight breeze wafting through the open car window. It tickled her cheeks before whirling away, leaving Yori to fiddle with her braid again.

"Anyway, Ayame," her uncle continued, "don't worry about it. Yori will settle in perfectly."

"I certainly hope so," her mother murmured worriedly. "You'll call if you get homesick, won't you? Mommy and Daddy will rush right home."

How badly she wanted to reach out and find her mother's loving arms and her father's broad chest, to cry and cry and tell them not to go, not to leave her in Japan all alone with no one except her cousin's family, but she bit her lip against the sob rising in her throat. It was her parents' twenty-fifth anniversary, and they deserved the trip to Europe without having to drag her and her walking stick around for once. They had babied and coddled her ever since the accident that took away her sight, and she couldn't walk a step without someone fussing over her, even as a high schooler. This was a chance for her to become independent.

The thought of being on her own scared her considerably, and once again, she fought the urge to give up and run into her parents' arms.

Maybe she could ask for a guide dog for Christmas...

Yori cleared her throat and smiled in the general direction of her mother's voice. "I'll be fine, Mom. Don't worry and just have fun." Fervently, she prayed that the strain in her voice wasn't audible-or visible, for that matter.

"You are so strong, Yori." Her mother pressed her lips to Yori's forehead, leaving another lipstick stain. This one, she patted away softly with her fingertips. "Thank you for being so courageous."

"Yeah..." Yori fidgeted, digging into the pocket of her dress to find her smartphone. It was the newest model on the market and was especially configured for a blind person's ease of accessibility. "Go on and pack, Mom, I'll be fine."

_No, I won't be, but I'll have to manage somehow._

She felt the engine start and rumble beneath her feet as her mother and father called out their last goodbyes. Sourly, she tugged her earbuds out of her pocket, fumbling with the headphone jack for a few moments before successfully attaching them into the phone. Pressing on the touch screen until the phone said "Music", Yori tapped randomly on a song and began listening intently. It would get her mind off of things.

_Don't you worry, don't you worry, child_

_See, Heaven's got a plan for you_

_Don't you worry, don't you worry now..._

How perfect. Yori sighed and stuffed the earbuds back into her pocket, not wanting to listen to the song any longer.

"So, how have you been lately, Yori?" her uncle asked conversationally over the rumble of the car engine. "You go to a girls' school, don't you?"

"Yes," she replied shortly.

"And how does it work out there?" Uncle Kyoshiro continued, seemingly fixated on the idea of talking the entire way to his house.

Inwardly, Yori hoped that the drive would be brief. Maybe she could pretend to be asleep to avoid talking-?

"I mean, with your disability and all...doesn't it make it difficult to study?"

Yori sighed. "I have a Braille typewriter that can convert the Braille into written text and a tutor after school if needed. Generally, all of my tests are pre-recorded."

The briskness of her answers served its purpose; Uncle Kyoshiro shut up for the rest of the car ride.

Satisfied, Yori listened to the car humming and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"Oh my God, Ricchan, I haven't seen you in so long!" Her cousin squealed when Yori stumbled out of the car, feeling the ground with her guide stick and wiping some drool off her mouth with the other.

Satsuki was as talkative and as loud as ever, but her voice helped lead Yori through the door, above the foyer, and into the sitting room where tea was waiting. "You know who you look like? Kirishima Mayu-chan, that idol that's been cropping up lately. Have you heard her newest single? It's called Ice Cream and it's _amazing_-"

"Satsuki! Let the poor girl sit down at least!" Her mother, Mariko, scolded as she set down a tray of snacks down on the table. The sound made an awful clatter, and Yori jumped a little as she felt for the edge of the table, sitting down and folding her legs underneath her.

"Yori-chan, if you need anything, just let us know," Aunt Mariko murmured cheerfully as she bopped Satsuki lightly on the head.

"Okay," Yori mumbled. She felt around for the steaming teacup and lifted it to her lips slowly, spilling a little onto the tabletop. Flushing angrily, she slammed the teacup down on the table, more of the hot tea sloshing out from its rim. "I'm so sorry."

Mariko mopped the mess up goodnaturedly. "Don't worry about it. Satsuki, why don't you take her upstairs and show Yori-chan her room?"

"Sure!" Undeterred by Yori's gloominess, Satsuki pulled her cousin to her feet and led her slowly down the hallway and into a room on the left. "Yori-chan, you'll be sharing a room with me, so we can get super close."

"Yeah," Yori laughed weakly, her stomach flip-flopping, "_close_."

* * *

The only time Yori had any time alone to herself was in the bath. All other times, she was constantly followed by Satsuki and Aunt Mariko, who seemed to have the preconception that if Yori was left alone for even a minute, she'd inevitably hurt herself. They had wanted to follow her into the bath as well, but Yori had vehemently disagreed, eventually persuading them that she was perfectly capable on her own.

As Yori sat in the tub of steaming hot water, she exhaled slowly and leaned her head back against the wall, relishing the silence. It was nice to not be peppered with so many questions, even if they were with good intentions.

_"Are you involved with any clubs at school? Our school's mainly involved with sports, but I'm sure I can find you something to do..." Satsuki took a rare breath in between words._

_Yori closed her eyes. "I used to play tennis and I swam a lot. I did art, too. Not anymore, though. There basically isn't anything else I can do."_

_"Hm..." Satsuki chewed her lip as she mentally sifted through the clubs at Touou. "Oh! Here's an idea!"_

_Mentally, Yori noted that, coming from Satsuki, "Here's an idea" usually meant something very, very bad._

_"Listen, I'm the full-time manager of the basketball team at Touou, which is basically the best sport on the planet. How about you be the assistant manager? That way, we can walk back home together and you won't be alone when I'm out for sports stuff."_

_"I'm blind," Yori shot back plainly, beginning to get irritated. "I can't do anything."_

_Satsuki, however, was undeterred by her abrasive reply. "Well, I'm sure we can find something for you. So think about it, okay?"_

Well, Yori was thinking about it, and she quite plainly balked at the idea. It was hard enough getting people to treat her equally in the classroom, but on a basketball court? She'd be stuck sitting on the bench all day, listening to the squeaking of gym shoes on the floor and the thumping of balls. There was no way she'd be of any use. If anything, she'd just attract unwanted attention.

She could see the headlines now. "Blind Girl on the Basketball Team: A Heartwarming Story." It was bad enough at her old school when she helped the gardening club plant some flowers and the entire affair was blown up into a front-page newspaper story. Yori was just trying to be normal, but disabilities made everything a huge deal. So she resolved to stay in the shadows and not attract attention. Better to be unnoticed than pitied.

"No thank you," Yori told Satsuki later as they got ready for bed. Satsuki's family was rather affluent and had purchased an additional bed to be placed within Satsuki's giant room. "I'm not interested in basketball nor in any clubs. I'll just wait for you in the library until practice is over."

Her parents had imposed a strict rule on her cousin's family that in no situation was she ever to walk outside alone.

Satsuki merely fluffed her pillows and burrowed deep within her satiny covers. "The library's currently undergoing renovation. Due to our talent in sports, the school is converting the library into a gym."

As a self-proclaimed lover of books, Yori cringed at the news. Turning a library into a gym? It was a distasteful thought and her face probably showed it, but Yori kept her feelings to herself.

Her cousin's voice softened. "Look, Yori, I'm trying my best. Please at least give it a shot. Just for a couple of weeks."

When Yori didn't respond, Satsuki bent to click the light switch, bathing the entire room in darkness. A pang of guilt stabbed at Yori's chest, and she turned on her side to bury her face into her pillow.

"...Okay. I'll try it."

She could almost hear the ear-splitting grin in Satsuki's voice. "Excellent."

* * *

**Let me know what you think, yeah?**


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